Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising
Director: Nicholas Stoller
Screenwriters: Andrew J. Cohen, Brendan O’Brien, Nicholas Stoller, Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg
Cast: Seth Rogen, Rose Byrne, Zac Efron, Chloë Grace Moretz, Dave Franco, Ike Barinholtz, Jerrod Carmichael, Hannibal Buress
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Rated R | 92 Minutes
Release Date: May 20, 2015

“This isn’t working! You’re only making them sexier!”

When you look at movies like Caddyshack II, The Hangover Part II, and Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues, one thing is clear: it’s damn near impossible to make a great comedy sequel. Why do these films pale in comparison to their predecessors? Is it because part of what makes comedy work in the first place is surprise, and by creating familiarity with a character or franchise, there’s less room for surprise? That’s certainly part of it.

That familiarity, however, is just a symptom of the cause of why comedy sequels often fail. Rarely are these films concerned with character development or story progression. It’s less about evolution and more about escalation. Characters remain largely unchanged while the emphasis is placed on making everything around them bigger and more outrageous. That’s what makes Nicholas Stoller‘s Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising so interesting. It looks like a rehash of the director’s 2014 film, but it’s a sneakily progressive movie that outsmarts its equally funny predecessor.

Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising
Director: Nicholas Stoller
Screenwriter: Seth Rogen, Nicholas Stoller, Evan Goldberg, Andrew Jay Cohen, Brendan O’Brien
Cast: Seth Rogen, Zac Efron, Rose Byrne, Chloë Grace Moretz, Beanie Feldstein, Kiersey Clemons, Dave Franco, Ike Barinholtz, Carla Gallo
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Rated R | 92 Minutes
Release Date: May 20, 2016

It’s hard to believe that a comedy sequel could actually be any good whatsoever. Repetition is the proverbial weapon of choice that so often kills a comedy sequel. It’s not even a question of making it greater than its predecessor but if such a thing is even necessary to begin with. For Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising, there are a few concerns, sure, no film is without flaw, but Nicholas Stoller brings us something that is still funny and manages to maintain that sharp wit and hilarious chemistry between the cast members all the while adding new elements and even addressing a few serious social issues that affect us today.

The film centers on Mac (Seth Rogen) and Kelly Radner (Rose Byrne) having to move and put their house in escrow when they find out that they are having a second child. When college freshman Shelby (Chloe Grace Moretz) establishes a new sorority, Kappa Nu, with Nora (Beanie Feldstein) and Beth (Kiersey Clemons) right next door, Mac and Kelly recruit Teddy (Zac Efron) to their team to battle the sorority sisters and prevent the buyers from pulling out.

Universal Pictures has released the newest trailer for Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising. Directed by Nicholas Stoller, the follow-up to 2014’s comedy hit stars Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne, who reprise their roles as parental figures who have to deal with yet another university-based social organization.

However, instead of a fraternity, they learn that their new neighbors are a sorority started by Chloë Grace Moretz, Kiersey Clemons, and Beanie Feldstein. So to kick them out of their neighborhood, they enlist the help of an old enemy, Teddy (Zac Efron). And things can only get crazier from there. Check out the latest trailer for Neighbors 2 below.

Mark Millar, the comic book scribe who created the series the Kick-Ass movies were based on, revealed recently that he had discuss the possibility of a solo Hit-Girl movie with Welsh action filmmaker Gareth Evans (The Raid). Played by Chloë Grace Moretz in the 2010 original directed by Matthew Vaughn and its inferior 2013 sequel, Kick-Ass 2, Hit-Girl was by far the breakout character of the little superhero franchise that almost was.

The idea of making a spin-off with the foul-mouthed teenage vigilante was taken seriously by Millar and Evans briefly.

Chloe Moretz had a few starring gigs before she became a household name thanks to Kick-Ass. Director Matthew Vaughn’s bubble gum pop adaptation of the comic of the same name was a massive cult hit, but it took a few years before we got to see a sequel. As the time it took to get a sequel took longer, Moretz got older, and soon that young Hit-Girl spouting out obscenities would lose its luster. Then came word that Vaughn wouldn’t return to direct Kick-Ass 2. By the time the sequel came out it was panned by critics, and the film was a huge flop at the box office.

Now Moretz is confirming that chances of seeing Kick-Ass 3 are dead, and she blames it on those who pirated the second entry. Hit the jump for more.